It was a game which fell our way at times and we didn’t really have any hairy situations, which was a luxury

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew

While Arsene Wenger, Roberto Di Matteo and Harry Redknapp are enduring ‘squeaky bum time’, Pardew is playing it oh so cool.

How else can you explain a Saturday schedule that defies everything which is supposed to happen at the business end of the season?

He kicked off his tension-free day with a leisurely drive into the city centre for a relaxing cappuccino.

During the match he was able to take off top performer Yohan Cabaye with half an hour left and the prolific Papiss Cisse with more than 20 minutes to go.

He probably spent the evening swigging champagne and smoking a big fat cigar to celebrate the fact that Newcastle are in the box seat to finish fourth.

The Toon enjoyed an easy afternoon against a Stoke side whose resistance crumbled once Cabaye opened the scoring on 14 minutes.

Everything is coming together for the unstoppable Geordies.

Newcastle have rattled up six successive wins for the first time since Kevin Keegan’s entertainers took the Premier League by storm.

Cisse is threatening to rewrite the scoring record books, the magical Hatem Ben Arfa is at times playing comic strip football and the Toon defence has gone almost 400 minutes without conceding.

“The first goal was critical in terms of how comfortable the day ended up,” said Pardew. “We didn’t have to chase the game or push ourselves.

“It was a game which fell our way at times and we didn’t really have any hairy situations, which was a luxury.”

Newcastle, as a football city, is revelling in the feel-good factor and Pardew is making the most of it.

“I drove in and had a coffee early in the morning and you could feel the buzz,” he added.

“The fans were out early, getting themselves prepared for the game and you can sense their excitement.

“Momentum at this club can be a powerful force and it is with us this year. I am lucky not to have been here when it’s going the other way because playing in front of 52,000 when it's not going well must be tough.”

It was almost the perfect afternoon for Newcastle, with Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham all dropping points.

If the highlights were Cabaye’s two goals and the Frenchman’s exquisite pass for Cisse’s 11th in nine starts, the moment which captured what Newcastle are about this season, came in the 61st minute with the result already in the bag. Moments earlier, James Perch had replaced the imperious Cabaye when, from a Stoke corner, he flung himself at the feet of Peter Crouch to block a goalbound shot.

“It shows how important the squad players are,” said Pardew.

“Perchinio is as important to this team as Hatem Ben Arfa.

“I’ve played in a very good Crystal Palace side, which finished third in the First Division, and had a very good West Ham side, but not had the camaraderie of this group.

“I hope that means these players all want to stay and we can do it all again next year because clubs will look at them and try to take them off our hands.”

Cheik Tiote, one likely candidate for a mega-money move in the summer, admits European football will make it hard for anyone to leave Newcastle.

“It is great for the club, the fans and everyone,” he said, with the Europa League at the very least guaranteed. “It will definitely convince players to stay.”

Stoke boss Tony Pulis has told Newcastle that even if they miss out on the Champions League, they’re still in for a treat.

“Whatever you do, don’t dismiss the Europa League,” he said. “If they make the Champions League, that’s a fantastic achievement, but if it’s the Europa League, they’ll enjoy that.

“It’s a fantastic tournament and if you do it right, you can be successful. We reached the last 32 and loved it.”

Pulis didn’t love what he saw on Saturday, however, with Jon Walters fluffi ng a good chance before Newcastle scored and Stoke failing to test Tim Krul.

“The biggest difference was that every chance they got, they made our keeper make a save and we didn’t do that,” he said.